Milwaukee-based private equity firm Mason Wells Inc. announced it has acquired Succasunna, New Jersey-based recreational sporting goods supplier EastPoint Sports Ltd. LLC.
Mike Nally, founder, president and chief executive officer of EastPoint, sold a controlling stake in the business to Mason Wells, and will stay on to continue running operations, said Greg Myers, senior managing director of Mason Wells Buyout Funds. Nally, senior management, board members and Bounds Equity Partners are minority shareholders. The transaction closed Aug. 22 for an undisclosed price.
Founded in 2009, EastPoint has 40 to 50 employees at its New Jersey headquarters and another 25 to 30 employees at its Shanghai, China office, Myers said. The company also has third-party warehousing in California and Ontario, Canada. EastPoint develops, imports and markets products including bean bag toss, table tennis, volleyball and badminton nets, and indoor basketball hoops, which are sold at retail stores and via e-commerce in North America. Its owned and licensed brands include Go! Gater, Majik, Rec-Tek, Classic Sport and NHL.
“We are very excited about our new partnership with Mason Wells,” Nally said. “Their experience successfully building consumer products companies will provide EastPoint with the resources necessary to support our long-term growth initiatives.”
Myers said Mason Wells does not plan to make any changes to personnel or business philosophy at EastPoint, but plans to invest in growth and product portfolio expansion. There are some opportunities in new channels and adjacencies, he said.
“We are very impressed with EastPoint’s strong management team and employees, unique sourcing infrastructure, and innovative product development capabilities,” said Chris Pummill, director at Mason Wells. “These key factors, along with strong customer and vendor relationships, have enabled the business to achieve remarkable growth during the last decade. We are pleased that Mike Nally will continue to lead the business. We also look forward to supporting the team as they expand EastPoint’s retail and e-commerce relationships and develop new products.”
Mason Wells has been investing its $615 million Buyout Fund IV it raised in 2016, which it plans to deploy in 10 to 14 companies by 2021.
